Flamengo, Atlético Mineiro and Botafogo also aspire to the title
A simple draw is enough for them in their last game, on Wednesday, when they will visit Cruzeiro
Palmeiras beat Fluminense 1-0 this Sunday, remaining the leader and They only need a draw to win the title, which Flamengo, Atlético Mineiro and Botafogo also want and that will be defined next Wednesday when the last day of the Brazilian Championship is played.
The São Paulo club remains in first position, with 69 points, three more than their two immediate runners-up, Atlético Mineiro and Flamengowhich maintained its chances for the title by also beating Cuiabá 2-1 this Sunday, and is in third place, with 66 points.
Atlético Mineiro, which beat São Paulo 2-1 at the end of the match on Saturdaywith a goal in the additional minutes, is in second position, with the same score as Flamengo but a greater goal difference.
Palmeiras will keep the title, the second consecutive and the twelfth in its history, with a simple draw in their last match, on Wednesday, when they will visit Cruzeiro. But they can also obtain the championship if they lose and if their pursuers do not win by historic landslides, since their scoring balance is much higher.
And it is that The League final is red hot and the desire of the competitors has been seen on the grass.
In the leader’s party, those led by Abel Ferreira dominated from the beginning despite encountering a difficult Fluminense team that showed a steel defense on several occasions, although it played with several substitutes.
Fluminense coach and interim coach of Brazil, Fernado Diniz, He chose to reserve starters like the full-back Marceloformer Real Madrid playerand the Argentine scorer Germán Cano for the FIFA Club World Cup, which he will play this month as champion of the Libertadores.
In Palmeiras’ match with Fluminense, Endrickthe young promise signed by Real Madrid, was the star of the afternoon as point guard, along with Breno Lopes who scored the winning goal.
The striker scored the first goal in the 16th minute after a masterful assist from the 17-year-old attacker, which ended up annulled by the VAR because the ball was touched by Endrick at the beginning of the play.
Lopes He didn’t have the desire and ten minutes later, in a counterattack, opened the scoring.
Not happy, He scored again almost at the end of the first halfbut it ended up being annulled by the VAR.
For the second half things became easier for the São Paulo club with the departure of Justen, sent off for a foul against Paraguayan Joaquín Piquerezwho ended up leaving the field due to knee discomfort and is a doubt for Wednesday’s game.
Minutes later Ferreira replaced Endrick and Breno with the entry of the Argentine José Manuel ‘el flaco’ López and the youthful Jhon Jhon. Apparently the coach wanted to reserve them for the final match of the Championship.
In another match on the penultimate day, Flamengo maintained the possibility of winning the title by beating Cuiabá, but to achieve this it depends on a defeat by Palmeiras in the visit that they will make next Wednesday to Cruzeiro, on an additional setback by Atlético Mineiro and on winning by a landslide against São Paulo, who will receive the Cariocas at their home.
The pupils of former Brazilian coach ‘Tite’ started strongly with the goal scored by Luiz Araújo just five minutes after the ball had rolled onto the court and they got the lead at the end of the first half, with a score by Pedro.
In the second half, the VAR awarded a penalty in favor of Cuiabá for the foul that Uruguayan defender Guillermo Varela committed on Clayson. Clayson himself was responsible for collecting it and scored the first goal for the Pantanero team.
With ten minutes left, The Maracaná applauded World Cup winner Filipe Luíswho was substituted in the last game of his professional career, a decision announced this week by the former Atlético de Madrid player.
The one who did not manage to advance in the table It was Botafogo that finished in fifth position because he barely achieved a goalless draw at home against Cruzeiro and Nilton Santos left the state booed after the poor performance of recent weeks for which he ended up giving up the leadership that he maintained almost throughout the Championship and which culminated in leaving him without the option of winning title.
Gremio, on the other hand, managed to climb to fourth position with a goal from the Uruguayan Luis Suárez, with which he aspires to secure a place in the Copa Libertadores, without options, since he was also left without options to lift the cup.